Hugo Chavez seemed stuck to Fernando Lugo's side after Lugo took the oath as Paraguay's new president on Friday. They attended an afternoon press conference with Ecuador's Rafael Correa at Asuncion's old train station. After Correa departed, the two presidents toured the museum at the station and then chatted in the old presidential railway car with two Latin American leftist intellectuals -- Eduardo Galeano from Uruguay and Leonardo Boff from Brazil. They then went to an outdoor gathering where they sang along with a band in front of a large crowd.

I covered them the next day, Saturday, as they attended Mass at Lugo's old church in San Pedro and then spoke to a crowd in the main square. From Chavez's language, it seemed like he saw Lugo as a potential ally. To sweeten the pot, Chavez promised to fill Paraguay's imported oil gap. In return, Chavez pointedly said he hoped that Paraguay would support Venezuela's entry into the Mercosur trading bloc.

I read an interesting analysis by Stratfor theorizing that Chavez was also playing another angle: he is trying to sway Lugo his way at a time when Lugo is demanding more money from Brazil as part of the Itaipu energy partnership. Stratfor said pulling Lugo away from Hugo would weaken Brazil's efforts to extend its influence throughout Latin America.

Chavez exhibited enormous charm particularly on Saturday. But he and his entourage didn't win over Paraguay's reporters. An article in Sunday's ABC Color newspaper, for example, reported that Chavez's bodyguards "insulted" and "hit" reporters trying to get close to Chavez. In defense of the bodyguards, they are trying to keep a nutcase from killing Chavez, certainly a valid concern. I thought it was simply better to get out of the way of Chavez and his bodyguards and they made their way towards me.

I also thought the Paraguayan photographers were overly aggressive in trying to get photos of Chavez. They repeatedly swarmed the altar in Lugo's former church during the Mass -- unnecessarily so since they already had had plenty of chances to snap Chavez and Lugo. But the Paraguayans had a valid point, I thought, when they complained, according to ABC Color, that Chavez and his bodyguards blocked the Paraguayan journalists but allowed the Venezuelan state network, Telesur, and his lackeys with the state Ministry of Information to get unfettered pictures and video images of Chavez. Paraguayan journalists complained that they were treated as second-class citizens in their own country -- a fair complaint, no?

I was impressed during Saturday's plaza ceremony at how Chavez bonded with young boys sitting in front of the stage. He beckoned to them to sit on the stage. They smiled as if they had just been given a giant ice cream sundae. But on Saturday and Sunday, the Ministry of Information sent out e-mails to reporters showing Chavez with the children. That made me wonder at Chavez's sincerity with the children. His people had a clear line to get photos of their leader.